PESHAWAR, Feb 21: The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (Samiul Haq) has called upon the Speaker National Assembly not to count its three party members in the Parliament with the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal while electing the leader of the opposition for the Lower House.

In a joint statement issued from Akora Khattak on Saturday, the three MNAs of JUI-S, including Maulana Hamidul Haq Haqqani, Maulana Shah Abdul Aziz and Maulana Gul Rehman, said that their party reserved the right to negotiate with any group inside the Parliament including the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD).

The statement said that the party, headed by Senator Maulana Samiul Haq, would soon request the Speaker National Assembly to allot separate seat to its parliamentary leader in the Lower House.

"The three MNAs of JUI-S are no more part of the alliance and Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain should reserve separate seat for their parliamentary leader in the National Assembly", the joint statement said.

It said that the parliamentary leader of the MMA Qazi Hussain Ahmad was incapable to take along the smaller components, adding that the Ulema-i-Islam (Samiul Haq) was in touch with the Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan (Noorani) to formulate their joint line of action in the Parliament.